Tullamore Castle, Ireland, is an enchanted place where the unexpected happens. Phantom lovers materialize in haunted beds and a lonely griffin patrols the ramparts, waiting to reclaim its mate. And that’s just the beginning.

For the adventure of a lifetime, Maeve dé Burgo visits Tullamore to study genealogy. Through a magical act and time travel, she becomes embroiled in a dangerous medieval romance and the unfinished life of her ancestor. Maeve gets thrown back in time to be captured, ravished and cherished as a war chief’s prize.

Ronan O’Griofa is a griffin-shifter, the most loyal of creatures. He’s been trapped in limbo as the avenging guardian of Tullamore since 1332 and longs to be free. When the soul of his wife returns to the castle, he’s granted the privilege of becoming a man for one day to be her lover, win her heart and remind Maeve of a bond strong enough to last an eternity.

This was my first introduction to Katalina Leon’s work, and I hope to read many more by this author. This book in the Emerald Isle Fantasies series brings us to Tullamore castle in Ireland: a castle with a long history and purported hauntings. Maeve has fled the remnants of her newly divorced life, and come to Tullamore to research her genealogy with hopes to write a historical romance. A dé Burgo by birth, her family’s heritage is tied to the castle, and interwoven with the current owners the O’Griofas. Ronan O’Griofa is a purported professor of history and expert on the stories of the castle, and he is going to answer Maeve’s questions as he takes her on a tour of the grounds and points of interest.

The world, the otherworldliness of the castle and grounds were beautifully established, there is a curious potential of past meeting present that is physically palpable, and Leon manages to convey that sense in the story. Additionally, the use of legend and history, incorporating a griffin and using the weather and mists of Ireland to further build the paranormal element and build reader’s expectations for intrigue.

And intrigue, sexy intrigue at that, there was: from waking to find herself in the midst of a pitched battle for the castle, to late night encounters with a stranger who disappears in a flash, to incredibly steamy sex with the handsome Ronan in a cabin in the woods, Maeve has the information and ability to change her life forever, if only she recognizes it. If you’ve never been to Ireland, this will make you want to go: and for those who have, the little details that are so unique and yet omnipresent feel just right! Katalina Leon has created a great little story here with plenty of emotional and physical details that will stir a reader’s body and mind, and I now need to read the others in the series.